On 12-14 October, UNDP Regional Director for Europe and the CIS, Mirjana Spoljaric Egger visited Kazakhstan to participate in the high-level conference dedicated to the achievement of Kazakhstan’s carbon neutrality by 2060 attended by President Tokayev and meet key national partners.

The mission was organized to foster and enhance the long-term strategic partnership between UNDP and the Government of Kazakhstan. Addressing inequalities, fostering knowledge-based economic growth, supporting climate resilience, nature-based low-carbon growth, and building effective institutions are among the key areas of UNDP’s work in Kazakhstan.

On 13 October, Ms. Spoljaric Egger participated in the high-level event dedicated to Kazakhstan’s goals to fulfill Paris Agreement commitments and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060.  The event gathered high-level participants from government institutions, top management of large industrial companies, financial institutions, development partners, and media. The event served as a platform for bringing to the attention of the public the economic and social opportunities provided by the transition to a carbon-neutral society. It also highlighted necessary decarbonization policies and transformations in infrastructure and industry sectors required for a low-carbon and climate-resilient development.

In her welcoming speech Mirjana Spoljaric Egger “called for an end to fossil fuel subsidies as the critical step to divest from fossil fuels and invest in both people and the planet”.

Ms. Spoljaric Egger held several bilateral meetings with senior decision-makers of the country. During the meeting with the Deputy Chair of the Senate, Mr. Askar Shakirov special attention was devoted to, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and progress with its implementation in Kazakhstan.

“In Kazakhstan, the basic parameters of national programs are brought in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). At present, they are integrated into the strategic documents of the country by 80%. At the 2022 session of the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, Kazakhstan will present its second Voluntary National Review of the progress made in this area. The Parliament of Kazakhstan has a key role in the implementation of the SDGs at the national level,” Askar Shakirov said.   

The parties also discussed the cooperation with the KazAID agency, an authorized body in the field of official development assistance. Since 2011, UNDP has been providing expert support to lay the grounds for the KAZAID agency, which also included concrete joint initiatives with the MFA and other donors to support Afghanistan, as well as countries of Central Asia and Africa. Ms. Spoljaric Egger noted Kazakhstan’s remarkable progress in the past three decades that enabled the transition from a recipient country to a donor country.

During the meeting with the Member of the Majilis of the Parliament of Kazakhstan, Director of Nursultan Nazarbayev Foundation, Ms. Dariga Nazarbayeva the parties had a substantive dialogue about gender issues, including the questions of gender quotas and gender-based violence. Ms. Spoljaric Egger briefed Ms. Nazarbayeva about the activities of the Central Asia Women Leaders’ Caucus to further promote women’s empowerment in the region. The meeting also touched upon green transition, future skills, and rural and regional development.

An important part of Ms. Spoljaric Egger was a meeting with the Deputy Head of the Administration of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan,  Mr. Timur Suleimenov. During the meeting, Ms. Spoljaric Egger reconfirmed UNDP’s readiness to support Kazakhstan’s development aspirations in all key transformative processes – green growth, social modernization, end-to-end digitalization, and next stage of governance reforms.

Priority areas of cooperation between the Government of Kazakhstan and UNDP were discussed at the meeting with Deputy Prime Minister, Mr. Yeraly Tugzhanov.  During the meeting Mr. Tugzhanov noted the importance of the social direction of cooperation, including in the field of healthcare, education and social protection. Particular attention was paid to the ongoing joint work during the pandemic. During the COVID-19 pandemic, UNDP helped deliver 190,000 medical kits to the most disadvantaged people of Kazakhstan across the country in partnership with and funded by the Asian Development Bank. In response to the MFAs request for humanitarian assistance, UNDP has  granted 5 Class B ambulances with modern medical equipment to the National Coordination Center for Emergency Medicine of the Ministry of Healthcare of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Ms. Spoljaric Egger noted the strong partnership with the Government of Kazakhstan. She highly appreciated the ongoing work on the development of the draft Social Code, the efforts of Kazakhstan in the field of digital transformation, environmental protection and ‘green economy’ aspirations.

During the meeting with Ms. Anar Zhailganova, Chairperson of the Agency for Civil Service Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Regional Director mentioned that support to public administration and civil service reforms are at the core of UNDP’s Country Programme for 2021-2025. She also added that UNDP stands ready to provide further support on the ‘last mile’ journey towards modernizing public institutions in Kazakhstan on par with OECD standards.